SBA SELECTS MARYLAND BUSINESS SCHOOL'S DINGMAN CENTER TO MANAGE STATE'S SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER NETWORK

College Park, MD - December 3, 1996 - The U.S. Small Business Administration has selected the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship, part of the University of Maryland Business School, to manage Maryland's five regional Small Business Development Centers (SBDC). The move brings Maryland's SBDC network into a university-based system, which is in line with 80 percent of the SBDCs nationwide. In addition, the move will further enhance services to businesses in local communities.

"Over the past few years, universities and colleges have developed and provided a wide range of business services to their local business communities," said Governor Parris N. Glendening. "By combining the expertise, equipment, facilities, and personnel resources of the Dingman Center with the specialized services and training programs offered by the Small Business Development Centers, we are creating a very strong partnership to enhance and expand Maryland's small business community."

"To improve and expand education, training, and counseling for small business owners, the SBA forges partnerships with the academic community, the private sector, and state and local governments," said Susan Myrtetus McCann, regional administrator for the SBA. "Partially funded and administered by the SBA, the SBDCs provide up-to-date and practical information that small businesses need to be successful in today's competitive market. By partnering with the University of Maryland, the SBDCs will have even greater access to the latest research and information to assist the entrepreneur."

Said Charles Heller, director of the Dingman Center: "The Dingman Center is pleased to bring its experience and expertise in serving the region's emerging growth companies to the Maryland SBDC Network. Along with the resources of the University of Maryland and support from the U.S. Small Business Administration, we will strive to strengthen the flywheel of the Maryland economy -- small business."

Small Business Development Centers provide free individualized business consulting, low-cost business training seminars, workshops and conferences, and targeted research in support of small business concerns. In fiscal year 1996, the Maryland SBDC Network provided 10,219 hours of counseling services to 2,717 clients. The network also sponsored 357 training sessions that attracted 4,606 participants. Topics included pre-business planning, computers in small business, starting and managing a business, personnel issues, total quality management, franchising, young entrepreneur development, rural development issues, women and minority business growth, export trade opportunities, business expansion, and procurement.

"The Maryland Small Business Development Center and the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development (and its predecessors) have developed a strong, successful working relationship over the past eight years," said Secretary James T. Brady. "However, as colleges and universities develop closer ties with the business community, it seems a more natural match to combine the resources of a university-based system with the business support and training facilities provided by the SBDCs."

The transition of the Maryland SBDCs from the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development to higher education oversight began last July when a request for proposals was sent to all Maryland institutions of higher education. An independent panel of judges established by the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Baltimore District Office of the SBA reviewed the proposals. The panel forwarded its recommendation to the Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration in Washington, D.C. Finally, the national office established a cooperative agreement between the SBA and the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the Maryland Business School. The agreement calls for the Dingman Center to serve as the lead center for the Maryland SBDCs for three years. Regional centers are located in Baltimore, Salisbury, LaPlata, Landover, and Cumberland.

The Dingman Center, established in 1987, assists the region's entrepreneurial community through a mentor program; an investment network; the Baltimore-Washington Venture Group; and various types of educational, training, and networking activities. It also offers the Maryland Business School's academic programs in entrepreneurship. For three consecutive years, including 1996, Success magazine has ranked the Maryland Business School as one of the nation's 25 "Best Schools for Entrepreneurs."

About the Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research for the digital economy. The school offers cross-functional study options in its six academic departments, which include accounting and information assurance; decision and information technologies; finance; logistics, business, and public policy; management and organization; and marketing. More information about the Robert H. Smith School of Business can be found at http://www.rhsmith.umd.edu.

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For more information: Jeff Heebner Robert H. Smith School of Business University of Maryland ( 301.405.9469 jheebner@rhsmith.umd.edu